This is moving fast. Mentioned as a possible landing spot for Terrell Suggs, the Cardinals are going to land the free agent pass rusher, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets.
An agreement will send the 16-year Ravens veteran, who told the team he will not be returning to Baltimore next season, back to Arizona. The contract for Suggs is a one-year, $7MM deal, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link). The somewhat hefty sum indicates the Cardinals still view Suggs as a full-time player.
Before going in the 2003 first round and becoming an all-time Ravens great, Suggs played his college ball at Arizona State. Suggs also spent his teenage years in Arizona.
One of the best players in Ravens history, Suggs will leave as the team’s sack leader (Suggs’ 132.5 sacks are 62.5 more than second-place Peter Boulware) and the Ravens’ games-played leader. A seven-time Pro Bowler and the 2011 defensive player of the year, Suggs surpassed Ray Lewis to become the Ravens’ games-played leader, suiting up for his 229th career regular-season contest in Week 17. The 36-year-old started all 16 games for a second-straight season in 2018, compiling 34 tackles and seven sacks.
Suggs will easily slide right into Arizona’s linebacker depth chart. The team really only has former first-rounder Haason Reddick slotted into the starting lineup, with Tanner Vallejo also projected to start.
I wish baseball free agency moved like this.
Well difference is there more talent out there that people wanted and no one asking for crazy 300+ contracts. Plus you have to factor in the draft a month later. Unless like baseball where the draft and free agency aren’t as close
If only baseball had a hard salary cap, a “salary floor” (89% of the salary cap over a 4 year period or you fork over the difference), predetermined salaries for top players at their position (franchise tags based on top 5 at position instead of top 125 overall like the baseball QO system) then there would be more parity in the league and a more eventful offseason. Unfortunately baseball gets to hold players hostage through their primes with severely depressed salaries compared to on field contributions. And then when they finally hit FA no one wants to pony up for “past performance”.
I mean Mookie Betts is making 20M this year. I doubt if he’d been signed a few years ago that he’s making this much for a year. He’d have likely signed a contract buying his arb years along the lines of 12-14M. Now he stands to make much more next year than the 20M he had this year.
But…. GUARANTEED contracts make up for all of those deficiencies.
Players agents negotiate for the guaranteed money. Them negotiating for a higher total and lower guarantees are on the players and agents?
Kirk Cousins got almost all of his 84M guaranteed. So it’s really on the individual.
Machado and Harper are not even the top position players in baseball and they got 300 million. The best NFL player gets in the mid 100s. When Mike Trout becomes a free agent it will make the NFL contracts look comical
This is straight garbage if they really let Suggs get away. They’ve always retained talent sans Reed for a year. Letting Suggs and possibly Mosley get away would be a poor start for DeCosta.
Agreed. Suggs is still a useful player and Mosley seems like a goner. Will be an interesting season for Baltimore next year.
Plus maybe Zadarius Smith as well. I could understand letting Suggs walk if they were going to keep at least one of the other two, but you can’t let 3 prime members of your front 7 walk for nothing. In the end I think they keep Mosley, though I would love to see him either a Steeler or preferably out of the division. He’s a damn good player.
Tbh, he’s 37, doesn’t play the run as well as he did. He’s a pt player now.
Smart. Who wouldn’t wanna live in sunny paradise over a dump like Baltimore? A city that worships a double murderer to boot.
Have you been to Phoenix?
No comparison!
I live in Phoenix. Every time I go to an east coast sesspool of a city like Philly, I tell myself I’ll never live there
Hey, no fair! In Steeler country Arizona is known as “Pittsburgh West” from all of the former Steelers players and coaches they’ve brought in over the years. You can’t bring a Raven into the mix!
In all seriousness, congrats to Suggs. I hated him as a Raven but it was a respectful kind of hate. He’s a great player, and he’s been always respectful of the Steelers-Ravens rivalry and complimentary of Roethlisberger in particular.
Phx is not a paradise. Hell’s Half Acre to be more precise. You are captive in your home or office during summer months. Battle the days of thunder that happen on the various freeways. Monsoon Season craps on your car. And the “Winter Visitors” make driving even more interesting during winter months.
There are certain players that are so clearly identified with a particular team that it is just too weird seeing them in any other uniform. Suggs is one of those guys. Wish him the best with the Redbirds but would have preferred it if he had been a Raven lifer.
Hell yeah!